Honey Stewed Squid - Chapter 44 — The Great Con Artist!

Renji Takeda didn’t expect to die from drinking too much sake. He also didn’t expect to wake up as Leif Thorenvald, the second male lead in a romance novel.But wait—shouldn’t he have transmigrated as a villainess? Or maybe an omega in some steamy Omegaverse? Nope. Fate clearly enjoys a joke.Now he’s trapped in a story where the heroine wields divine powers, the villainess plots in silk gowns, and the dashing Grand Duke is destined to win the girl. And Renji? He’s the poor sap who gets rejected with a smile.There’s just one tiny issue.Renji is gay.So instead of sulking and chasing after a woman he has zero interest in, he tosses the author’s script into the chamber fireplace, packs his bags, and flees to the cold, quiet North to enjoy his second life in peace.Everything’s going perfectly... Until the Grand Duke, Alvar Ragnulfsson, shows up. The supposedly straight male lead is suddenly far too close—lingering stares, casual touches, and an interest that’s definitely crossing the “just friends” line.Suddenly, the overlooked second lead might be headlining a very different story.Between politics, divine powers, and a dangerously attentive Grand Duke, Renji has only one question:Is he rewriting the script... or is the script rewriting him?

In a world transformed by dungeon gates and awakened classes, Hunters fight monsters to earn power, fame, and fortune.Frank? He awakened as a Trader. F-Rank.No spells. No sword skills. Just one system window… and 500 dimensional tokens.Everyone laughed. Told him to quit. But Frank didn’t need fireballs—he had something better:『Dimensional Trading System Online』Connects to other worlds. One trade per day. Limited inventory. Unlimited potential.He sold candy to bug warriors. Swapped solar chargers for alchemy potions. Bought a sword technique with instant delivery.Then, he opened a booth beside a dungeon gate… and started outselling real vendors.Now, the same Hunters who mocked him line up to buy.Guild-backed merchants want him gone.And Frank? He’s just getting started.He’s not hiding. He’s not cheating.He’s building a business—and a blade arm to match.When monsters strike, Frank fights beside his customers.When dungeon loot drops, he flips it across worlds.From a broke rookie to a cross-realm powerhouse, Frank isn’t just surviving—he’s becoming the most dangerous F-Rank in the business.

In the ‘90s era, Adrian Cowell was just a rich young man living it up in Los Angeles who had spent years in indulgence and often caused trouble. Unable to allow his behavior to continue, his parents changed their will before their passing and he was no longer able to live as extravagantly as he did before. However, Adrian's fate took a turn one night while trying to fix his bedside lamp which led to Zhang Haoxuan, a man from the future who had time-traveled after being intoxicated, to possess his body.Assuming his new identity as ‘Adrian’, he utilizes his absurd memory for films in his former life as Zhang Haoxuan, as well as Adrian’s wealth and connections, to replicate films that have been produced in the future — determined to dominate the Hollywood scene.Watch Adrian as he rises to be the king of Hollywood, a figure who will be envied by many!

It was in the middle of the night that the woman who would be the Duchess came to see me.

She said my father and mother died, and my kind uncle became king.

She said it’s not worth it for me, the crown prince, to be living in hiding, too.

“A while ago, Your Highness had been hiding from me. With all due respect, is that for the sake of survival? Just because your parents died doesn’t mean you have no reason to survive. Actually, that fact alone made it all the more reason why you should live. If you die now…”

If I died now?

When I asked her while looking at her eyes, the woman eventually brought out the harsh truth with empathetic eyes.

“It’s like a dog’s death.”

“That’s rude….”

It’s been a long time since I said that. In a short while, he has been treated as a madman and beaten to death just by saying similar things. She loosened her arms that held me and I suddenly stiffened up due to it. Because I thought she might have loosened her arm to hit me. But she didn’t.

She knelt down with one knee in front of me, just like a knight.

“Hastred’s Sarian raised her salutations. May you accept it gladly.”

My first knight is beautiful and kind.

“Are you on my side?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

It was all a lie.